For most people, going to the zoo used to simply be a joyous occasion to see their favorite animals. They marveled at the adorable ones — probably skimming the signage listing the animals’ scientific names, original habitat and lifestyles — ate some hot dogs, drank some soda and called it a day.
Although Taipei Zoo still consistently draws more than 3 million visitors per year, the perception of zoos and museums has been changing, and many have started to question the idea of having visitors look at an exotic animal in an artificial enclosure without knowing anything about how its life has been affected.
Zoos are not going to disappear anytime soon, and many endangered animals would probably face a much worse fate in the wild, or at worse, go extinct. However, as Taipei Zoo remains popular, thanks to its celebrity pandas and, most recently, newborn otters, it is good to see it reiterating its commitment to wildlife conservation education.
On Monday, the Taipei Times reported that Taipei Zoo “hopes to work with schools and government agencies to increase public awareness of wildlife protection.” Zoo spokesman Eric Tsao (曹先紹) quoted conservationist William Conway as saying that it is crucial for zoos worldwide to transition from “living museums” to conservation institutions.
Zoos should definitely play a part in conservation due to their experience and resources, and the article highlighted many of Taipei Zoo’s ventures, such as sending sika deer to nature parks to boost their population. This is a role a modern zoo must assume, but public education is equally important, especially when there are so many endangered species in Taiwan.
Some might claim to know all about the plight of the black bear and the Formosan clouded leopard, but the full list of protected animals in Taiwan is pretty long.
Yes, the main draw of the zoo will remain the “cuteness factor” of its star animals. Zoos have jumped on technology to show much more than can be seen during a brief visit, such as webcams showing animals giving birth or “behind the scenes” social media posts of caretakers interacting with animals.
However, that is still mostly fun, entertaining content. It will bring people closer to the animals, but it is easy for many to just say “how cute” after watching a baby sloth be bottle-fed and go on with their day.
It seems that zoos tend to downplay a crucial factor in conservation — human impact. People tend to look at animals in their artificial habitats in a vacuum, as if they only existed there. How different would an animal’s life be if it was in the wild? How did it get to the zoo? Why is it in the zoo? Have humans destroyed its natural habitat? Is there still a place in the wild for this animal? This context needs to be prominent in order for zoos to become conservation centers.
Zoos offer the only chance for most city dwellers to see endangered animals. A zoo does not have to make the information unsettling, but perhaps it needs to ensure that every visitor — especially children — is made aware of what humans have done to the planet’s other species and why so many animals are going extinct. What better way to get people to start caring about conservation than juxtaposing cute animals and their possibly horrific fates?
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